


Tea and Conversation

by FantasticalNonsense



Series: Avatar Katara (ATLA Element Swap AU) [4]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Role Reversal, Gen, Imperialism, Period-Typical Racism, Teacher-Student Relationship, court intrigue, it's the Fire Nation, what do you expect?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-26
Updated: 2020-04-26
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:14:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,129
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23864335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FantasticalNonsense/pseuds/FantasticalNonsense
Summary: 99-100 AG, early winter. Fire Princess Suki receives an unexpected guest and some troubling news.
Relationships: Suki & Piandao (Avatar) - Relationship
Series: Avatar Katara (ATLA Element Swap AU) [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1718407
Kudos: 17





	Tea and Conversation

**Author's Note:**

  * For [attackfish](https://archiveofourown.org/users/attackfish/gifts).



> Suki's life at court is awful. She's a non-bender in a society that elevates firebending above all other things, she's lost her mother, sister, and uncle, the only people who truly care about her, and she's viewed by her father as a pawn for producing heirs. I wanted to give Suki some form of support in this universe, and then thought, who better to train her (and give her a link to Iroh) than Piandao? Obviously this isn't a training fic, but I hope their history and camaraderie come though here. Maybe one day I'll write about little Suki under Piandao's tutelage.

Suki didn’t often entertain guests. Her contact with people was limited due to her position as a Fire Nation princess and the tight surveillance the Royal Court kept her under. So, when one of her attendants announced that she had a visitor, it came as no small surprise.

“Who is it?” she asked. Her mind went to her school friends, but Chinatsu was visiting her sister in Lao Zhen, and Akane’s family wasn’t ranked high enough to be granted entry. It couldn’t be either one of them.

“Master Piandao, Your Highness,” the attendant replied. “He’s requested an audience to discuss furthering your swordsmanship training.”

Suki clutched the arms of her chair. Piandao was here? In the capital? “Show him in at once!”

The attendant bowed and returned with the swordmaster. He looked exactly as Suki remembered, albeit with more creases on his face and gray hair around his temples. He sunk to his knees and prostrated himself before her. “Princess Suki,” he said. His countenance was politely neutral, but his eyes sparkled with fond affection.

“Master Piandao,” she said, motioning for him to rise. “You’ve travelled far from Shu Jing. How was your journey?”

“Oh, very smooth,” he said. “The winds were strong and in our favour.”

_I wasn’t followed or detained at the gates._

“How fortunate. You must tell me more over tea. Then, we can discuss my training. Jia?” She summoned her tea maid. “Prepare a pot of yellow tea. We shall have it in the garden. The rest of you are dismissed.”

Her attendants dispersed. Suki waited until the last of their footsteps disappeared around the corridor. She counted down.

 _One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten_ …

Silence. No sound of movement on the other side of the corridor.

She sighed. Good, they didn’t suspect anything. Her father wouldn’t be informed of this.

Suki rose from her chair and gestured to Piandao to follow her.

* * *

“’ _Furthering my swordsmanship’_? Last time we met, you declared you had nothing left to teach me!”

Piandao chuckled. “Well, your attendants don’t need to know that. After all, how many become skilled enough with the blade to take on their master at thirteen?”

Suki grinned. She was particularly proud of that accomplishment. She grabbed the teapot and poured out two cups, savouring the gentle floral and fruity notes.

“I understand that Fire Lady Rina has been dismissed from Court?”

Suki nodded sadly. “Another miscarriage, the fourth one in two years. The Fire Lord has just announced his intention to remarry.”

“Poor woman,” Piandao sighed. “Her family won’t like this. At least the burden won’t fall upon you.”

It very nearly had. As a non-bender Suki was ineligible for the throne, but there had been talks of betrothing her to a noble-ranked firebender in the hope that she would produce an heir once she came of age. Her father’s top pick had been Commander Zhao who, for all his lack of rank and self-control, was an experienced officer and a tremendously powerful firebender. Suki couldn’t stand him. He was pompous, arrogant, and looked at her like she was a pathetic Earth Kingdom vessel he wanted to plunder. His gaze had haunted her for days before he finally left to return to his fleet.

(The little emergency travel bag that she’d hastily put together remained hidden beneath her bed. She really should move it to a more secure spot.)

“I did consider writing,” Piandao continued, picking up his cup. “But the risk of interception was too high. I thought it safer to talk face-to-face.” He took a sip. “Hmmm. Delicious.”

“Jia knows her way around tea,” Suki said. “She came highly recommended from Uncle.” She clasped her hands around her own cup. “What news is there from him?”

Piandao put down his tea. “It’s...troubling, Princess. First, I want to assure you that your sister is fine. Flourishing, from what General Iroh wrote. You have nothing to worry about on that account.”

Suki raised an eyebrow. “And the second…?”

Piandao turned his head cautiously, as though worried someone would overhear what he was about to say. It was unnecessary—no one came out to the gardens anymore, not since her mother disappeared. They were far from prying ears.

“He says that the Avatar has returned.”

Suki’s cup slipped from her fingers. The delicate china shattered on the hard floor of the pavilion, spilling droplets of hot tea on her robes.

“Y-you can’t be serious,” she said. “The Avatar’s dead, along with the rest of the Air Nation! How’s that possible?”

The swordmaster shook his head. “I don’t know. I dismissed it initially as the ramblings of an old man, but General Iroh claimed he had it on good authority to know it was true. Then, a friend stationed on one of the blockade ships contacted me saying that his whole crew had seen the Avatar and his companions up close, on two flying bison, no less! The officials have tried to contain the story, but word is spreading. Soon, the whole world will know.”

Suki felt her head swim. The Avatar had returned. The cowardly, treacherous figure from her bedtime stories, the one who wanted to keep the world divided and separate rather than stand with Fire Lord Sozin and unite it under one flag, was roaming about and breaching Fire Nation defenses. How could such a man pose a threat to them? It was absurd!

And yet, Suki recalled details from those same stories that spoke of the Avatar’s great power, chiefly his mastery over the four elements and his ability to control the spirits. Fire was fierce and strong, but it could be halted by earth and extinguished by water. Theoretically, a strong enough wind could snuff it out, too.

She knew her uncle; for all his fanciful proverbs he wouldn’t lie about something like this. Moreover, _Piandao_ had no reason to lie to her about this.

“If what you say is true,” she began, slowly, “And the Avatar has returned, then that means he’ll try to stop the war, halt Fire Nation progress. Maybe even go after members of the Royal Family!” She shuddered at the thought of Uncle Iroh on that old, rusted excuse for a warship, trying to outmaneuver a flying bison, and Toph, her little sister, struggling to fight against an enemy she couldn’t see.

Piandao took her hand. “General Iroh will ensure your sister’s safety. And, should the need arise, _I_ will ensure yours.” He squeezed gently, a silent promise.

Suki smiled. “Thank you, Master Piandao.” It was gratifying to know there was someone she could rely on outside the Court.

(She sent a silent prayer to any spirit who might be listening that she when the time came, she wouldn’t have to.)

**Author's Note:**

> In my headcanon, Piandao has been teaching Suki since she was five. At Ursa's behest, Iroh petitioned Azulon to allow her to train under the revered swordsman, arguing that what she lacked in bending she could make up for in other ways. Ozai allowed her to continue her education when he came to power if only for the sake of making him look better as Fire Lord.


End file.
